Exclamatory Inquiry

It's time for another dispatch from Bizarro Studios North. March has come in like a mutant lion-lamb hybrid, and in a couple weeks we'll be resetting our clocks for reasons no one can remember or explain.

This week's bucolic pipe pic comes to us courtesy of faithful Bizarro reader Glenn S. It's a portrait of country music star Dave "Stringbean" Akeman, taken at his home in March, 1962.

Photo: Jack Corn/The Tennessean

Stringbean (1915-1973) was regarded as one of the best claw-hammer banjo players of all time, and had a long career as a musician and comedian before becoming more widely known as a cast member on Hee Haw, a TV variety show featuring music and corny humor. The program ran from 1969 to 1971 on CBS, and in syndication through 1993.

As a star of the Grand Ole Opry, Stringbean exaggerated his gangly appearance with wacky outfits that made him resemble a funhouse mirror image.

Thanks to Glenn for the great photo, and for pointing me toward some excellent music to explore.

That picture of Stringbean on stage makes the human anatomy in my drawings look almost normal. Speaking of which, here's my latest comic output for your review.

Monday's protagonist is either a pastry lover or an arms enthusiast.

 

Another tragic interspecies love story. Just wait till Wolfie whispers, "I'd like to try on your clothing."

On Wednesday, we looked at the mundane side of life in the Marvel universe.

The panel and the strip each contained four secret symbols, but not the same four.

 

Long before adopting his pen name, little Eric Blair created an early draft of one of his best known works, though at the time, he called it Edible Farm. 

 

Our second superhero gag of the week features The Inexplicable Interrobang, a character I'm hoping will spawn a lucrative movie franchise for Bizarro Studios.

 

Inty's costume was pretty much in place in my initial sketch, but the gag felt a little weak. I eventually hit on the job fair idea, which gave me an opportunity to draw a few more imagined crimefighters.

In case you're curious, an interrobang is a punctuation mark combining a question mark and an exclamation point. I thought it was a fitting name for this oddball character.

For Switcheroo Saturday, we presented a sympathetic portrayal of the much-maligned monster under the bed.

And that wraps up another week in Bizarro comics. Thanks again to Glenn S, and other readers who've suggested pipe pics for the blog. I can't guarantee that I'll use every one that comes in, but I appreciate seeing your discoveries.

Don't forget to visit Dan Piraro's blog, where he has more to say about these gags, and whatever else is on his mind this week. His weekly post also features his newest Sunday Bizarro page, which is always a wonder of comic art.

Bonus Track

"Little Snack Bar"
composed by Berto Pisano
from the film Interrabang (1969)

Pisano (1928 - 2002) was an Italian composer, conductor, arranger and jazz musician. The Interrabang soundtrack is the only work of his that was familiar to me. Friday's superhero reminded me that I have the CD in my collection. I hadn't heard it in a long while, and on this listening, "Little Snack Bar" was my favorite selection.

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